Day 9
by Trust Creedence
Summary: A terrorist attack on the U.S. leads Jack Bauer into coming out of hiding to confront the threat, in exchange for a full Presidential pardon. Along the way to uncovering the conspiracy, he'll make allies and enemies old and new, and the stakes are raised.
1. A New Dawn

DISCLAIMER: All canon characters, places, and everything else in this story are copyright of their respective owners. I own none of the aforementioned, though all original characters, places, and others were created by myself, with helpful input from a friend. Any similarities to any real life person or thing is purely coincidental.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: I try to research as much as possible, though there are at some point bound to be a few things different from how they work in real life. I haven't got it all down in writing yet, but several things could arise familiar with the shows in question. Namely, perhaps some hacking, setting up video feeds, bombs, and other things which I would rather not get flagged over for looking up. If anyone sees any issues that need correcting in this area, please let me know.

Of further note, while 24 is purely based around a clock, this can prove quite difficult in putting it to paper, and can lead to unnecessary padding and filler, which no one wants, as they get in the way of the story. Therefore, to get as much story out of this as possible, I have chosen to forego the time-based episodes, and I instead will focus on one chapter at a time, which will no doubt lead to more than just 24 chapters. I intend to split the story over 3 acts or parts, each dealing with a different layer of the overarching conspiracy throughout the day. Think of it as like Martin Scorsese's trilogy of gangster films, with every act representing a deeper step into the storyline and the myth arc.

Finally, while there will be some NCIS in here as well, I am not as familiar with NCIS as I am with 24, having not seen every single episode. Therefore, some certain retcons may have to be employed in order to link both universes.

SERIES TIMELINE: While the 24 timeline has always been rather vague, I'm certain I've finally figured it out thanks to numerous clues.

Day 1 - March 2004

Day 2 - September 2005

Day 3 - September 2008

Day 4 - March 2010

Day 5 - September 2011

Day 6 - May 2013

Day 7 - March 2017

Day 8 - September 2018

Day 9 - December 2022

This story is rated M for strong violence and pervasive language. Reader discretion is advised.

_**Chapter 1: A New Dawn **_

* * *

><p><strong>5:01AM<strong>

**UNITED AIRLINES FLIGHT 901**

**EN ROUTE FROM PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC TO NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK**

**CHRISTMAS EVE, DECEMBER 24****th****, 2022, PRESENT DAY**

Peace treaties! Ha! The mere thought of world peace made Logan Byrne laugh hardily as he read through a news magazine, while seated down in the coach section of a plane headed towards New York City.

"As long as there is dissention...", Logan thought, "...there can never be any true peace."

Logan knew this all too well. He had faithfully served Ireland as a countryman, in her army, and now he knew that such ideals were false. After being cast aside like so many others, Logan met Ryan Carrigan, who also served in Her Majesty's army, and was cast aside just as well. Ryan was a key figure in the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and the IRA sought to win Northern Ireland's full independence from the United Kingdom. The media may label them as terrorists, but to Logan, Carrigan, and all of the brothers and sisters, they're freedom fighters. They're patriots. Today will be an historic day, remembered for the ages to come.

Just the same however, Logan thought back 20 years ago, when he was just a lad. He thought about a similar act. He remembered when a ragtag bunch of Arabic nationalists flew planes into the World Trade Center in NYC, with the intent of proving a point to the world. On some level, they certainly succeeded. To this day, airline security is much tougher than it was before. Not only that, but people of Islamic culture are viewed in a much harsher light. It would be damn near impossible for this plan to succeed if it was being pulled off by a group of Arabs. That's where Carrigan's crew comes in. Logan knew what the mission was - free brothers and sisters in arms who had been falsely imprisoned by the UK and her allies. He looked at his watch. It read 5:04am. It was just about time.

Like clockwork, Gavin Sullivan, the commander of Logan and his brothers onboard, passed by and nodded to him. Logan returned the nod. Nick Gilley, Logan's best friend, came over and sat down in the empty seat next to Logan.

"You ready, mate?", Nick whispered to Logan. "This is gonna make us all famous."

"Let's just focus on the task at hand before we discuss our place in the history books.", Logan replied.

"Too right, mate. Bathroom. God speed.", Nick said.

Logan stood up and walked carefully down the aisle, and through the first class wing. Taking a look around, he saw several faces. Men and women in business suits, mainly Americans and Europeans. But no children to be found. This was a diplomatic flight, for certain. He did notice several individuals of high importance. Several stoic-looking men with earpieces and wearing casual jackets with plenty of space in the shoulders could only mean one thing - protection. And these weren't just a bunch of hired dimwits, either. Logan could tell they were professionals. In addition to the armed agents onboard, he took note of 3 men in different seats who didn't blink for anything. Alert and focused, he knew then and there that these boys were air marshals. Finally, 2 guards in security uniforms stood by the cockpit. Given the high value of this flight, namely more than a few people onboard who America and Great Britain would pay a steep price to get back, all this extra security was especially necessary. Carefully and cautiously, so as not to arouse the attention of anyone with a gun, Logan entered the bathroom close to the cockpit. Feeling around under the sink, he found what he was looking for - a Glock 17, with a fully loaded clip of 17 9x19mm Parabellum rounds. Checking the pistol all around to make sure it wouldn't jam on him once the shite hit the fan, Logan then found the silencer he needed and attached it to the gun's barrel. This wasn't some action flick, so he knew the silencer wouldn't make the gun all quiet. That wasn't the purpose. The purpose was to ensure that the cabin stayed pressurized and wouldn't fly apart unless some jackass shot at the damned wall, or in the worst event, a window. Logan holstered the gun and exited the bathroom, looking as confident and relaxed as possible. Hopefully, the guards will think Logan just took a grand shit and feels happy. He walked over to the closest air marshal, who's seat next to him was empty.

"Pardon me, chap. Do you mind if I sit here?", Logan asked the marshal.

"No, go ahead. We don't have a lot longer until we land.", the marshal replied.

"Thank you, sir.", Logan said.

He took his seat next to the marshal. This was somewhat advantageous. He had the marshal in a relaxed state, thinking that Logan was just some stereotypical English Cockney punk. Given that the marshal was probably more concerned with any Muslim-looking person and not a causcasian, Anglo-looking one, Logan pretty much flew under suspicion, no pun intended. Logan sat back and waited another minute.

As Logan was waiting, he mulled over what he had read in the magazine, and what you couldn't turn on a bloody TV without hearing about. That being, the peace treaty. The new American President was working with the new Russian President to draft some treaty to ensure world peace, and a bunch of other crap. Logan remembered something very similar to this. About 4 years ago, the American and Russian presidents, along with the IRK president, tried to draft a peace treaty. However, then it turned out that both President Taylor and President Suvarov were involved in some grand scheme, the details of which Logan was still rather fuzzy on. He hadn't looked into the scandal all that much, but he knew it had something to do with the assassination of the previous IRK president that very day. Whatever the case, Taylor resigned and was remanded to a 5 year sentence in Club Fed. A rather lax sentence, but she was the President of the United States, after all. On the other hand, Suvarov was arrested, charged with conspiracy and murder, and is presently wasting away in some Russian jail cell. The treaty to be signed that day was regarded as a joke, and nothing came of it. But now, both countries have new Presidents. The U.S. has Tom Fahey, a reformer who was elected in a huge landslide in the 2020 Presidential Election. In Russia, the head honcho is Dimitri Petrovic, another reformer and quite possibly Fahey's best friend, who had succeeded the scandal-filled administration with intent to not go back to the days of the Cold War. In any event, Logan figured that after this morning, the treaty would seem very insignificant.

The clock rolled at 5:09am. Nick started down the aisle. He approached the 2 security guards at the cockpit. One of the guards tried to stop Nick.

"I'm sorry, sir, you'll have to take your seat..."

He didn't finish that sentence. Nick quickly pulled out his Glock and blasted the first guard, BAM! BAM!, twice in the chest. Before the second guard could react, Nick put 2 in him as well for good measure. Both fell dead in crumpled heaps at Nick's feet. The air marshal sitting next to Logan didn't get a chance to get his bearings. Logan pulled out his Glock and shot the marshal several times in his chest at point blank range, and he quickly faded in front of Logan's eyes. A second marshal came running down the aisle, but before he could draw a bead on Logan or Nick, he was quickly cut down from behind by Riley O'Callaghan, the team's pilot. Within an instant, the passengers and flight attendants scrambled, yelling for help. The security agents proved to be a more interesting challenge, but they were very quickly surprised and had both a positional and numerical disadvantage. One of them was shot through the side of the head by Sullivan. Another was shot multiple times in the abdomen by Sam Dalton, the team's technical expert. Logan quickly snuck up behind a nearby agent and shot him through the back of the head. He never knew what hit him. While the remaining agents, plus the last air marshal, attempted to out flank the IRA troops and push them towards the front of the plane, this plan quickly fell apart, as numerous brothers-in-arms emerged from the cargo area where several automatic weapons had been stashed beforehand, generously enough. 2 agents were cut down in short order by Seamus, one of the men. 3 others were riddled with bullets by the brothers. Their pistols were no match for Kalashnikov AK-47s and Heckler & Koch MP5s. Just then, an explosion rocked the front of the plane. A bomb tore open the keypad-locked door to the cockpit, courtesy of Logan and Riley. Both men ran in and prevented the 3 pilots from calling for any help.

"Hey! Asshole!", Riley yelled to the captain. "Don't touch anything, or you'll be walking away with one less finger!"

He jammed his pistol into the side of the captain's head.

"Just do as we say and you'll all get out of this alive. And remember, I am a pilot.", Riley warned the crew.

Back in the cabin, the remaining agent attempted to seek cover, only to be met with a bullet to the face by Nick for his troubles. This left only the final air marshal as the sole threat to the operation. He didn't even bother trying to run. He had been too overwhelmed by the combat to do much of anything. But even though he was considered an enemy combatant to the IRA men, Sullivan had other plans for him. Logan ran out of the cockpit to brief Sullivan.

"We've secured the cockpit, sir. We've got full control of the plane now.", Logan confidently told his boss.

"Good work, Logan. And good job, men!", Sullivan applauded. "We've still got work yet to come, but we've done the impossible! With this plane at hand, today we will make history, gentlemen!", Sullivan seemed very happy.

And for good reason, all of the men were celebrating as well. They knew that today they would finally repay the British Crown. One of the passengers, however, obviously enough, was not so happy.

"Do you know who you're fucking with here? Do you? Huh? You and your friends are all fucked!", a younger, cocky man wearing a sharp suit yelled at Nick.

"Shut the fuck up!", Nick hit the man in the gut hard with his MP5. "Just shut the fuck up and sit back down! No heroes! We're not here for all of you! We just want what's ours!", Nick yelled at the passengers and crew.

"What do you want to do with the pig here?", Seamus asked Sullivan in reference to their friend, the marshal.

"Don't kill him. I've got plans for him. Sam, Logan, and Nick, you three come with me. Get the marshal, we'll need him.", Sullivan said. "Everyone else, start securing the passengers and the attendants. Bring them to the coach section."

The other troops immediately complied, rounding up the passengers and crew against their will and escorting them to the coach section. Logan wasn't sure what the plan for the hostages were, but they weren't the enemy. He picked up the marshal and went along with Sullivan, Dalton, and Nick to the cockpit, where Riley had relieved the navigator of his duty and handed him off to a comrade to take to coach.

"Sam, start setting up a link between here and Washington. You know the plan.", Sullivan told Dalton. "You two, if you don't do exactly as we tell you, if you try to call for help, you're dead. Understand? Good. Now, there's a little change in schedule. Stay on this path, start heading towards Dallas.", Sullivan told the pilots.

"Dallas? Why Dallas?", asked the captain.

"You'll find out very soon. For now, just do as I and my men here tell you.", Sullivan retorted. "Sam, how's that link coming along?", Sullivan asked Dalton.

"Almost...got it! We should have a full feed now.", Dalton said.

"Good. Masks on, gentlemen. We can't risk exposing our identities for now."

Sullivan, Logan, Nick, and Riley all put on their ski masks, heavily obscuring their facial features. Dalton set up a video camera and started recording, knowing full well it would get picked up by government agencies and transmitted directly to all major news networks.

"And...now!", Dalton said.

Sullivan started talking, "December 24th, 2022. This is not a hoax. We, the Irish Republican Army, have taken control of United Airlines Flight 901, en route from Prague to New York City. If you have received our present sent out very early this morning, then you should have anticipated this. We are in possession of some 200+ hostages onboard, and as of right now, I have 3 very simple demands that if you do not comply with, you can expect serious consequences.

Number 1. You will cancel this peace treaty signing. It is an affront to Irish independence.

Number 2. Northern Ireland must be given full independence from the United Kingdom.

and Number 3. You and your allies will free all of the brothers and sisters you have falsely imprisoned. Their names have been recorded in our previous video.

You have 30 minutes to cancel this treaty, for the UK to announce it will give Northern Ireland full independence, and to start the process of freeing all of your "political prisoners". Once we have word that all of this is underway, we will set the plane down and free all the hostages, so long as we are allowed to fly to native Ireland with no interference. Failure to comply with these demands will result in severe consequences. And just to show how serious we are, we will provide a demonstration for you."

Sullivan shoots the air marshal through the side of the head.

"I hope you will not take this lightly. If we do not hear good news within the next 30 minutes, 2 more hostages will be executed. And the number of hostages killed will increase with 10 minute intervals. You have been warned. I trust you will do the right thing.", Sullivan finishes his speech.

Dalton stops recording, while Logan and Nick proceed to carry the marshal's body away. Sullivan takes off his mask.

"Will this work, Gavin?", Dalton asked.

"Just be confident, Sam. This will have already been transmitted across the United States and the world. We are on the path to making history." Sullivan assured Dalton. He grabs the loudspeaker. "Everyone onboard, this is your new captain speaking. Destination, Dallas."


	2. That Old Familiar Feeling

_**Chapter 2: That Old Familiar Feeling**_

* * *

><p><strong>GWYNN OAK AVENUE<strong>

**WOODLAWN, MARYLAND**

It was a beautiful winter's day. Good snowfall last night, clear skies, and not much traffic. Not to mention, it was Christmas Eve. For the first time in he didn't know how long, Jack Bauer looked forward to spending Christmas in the company of friends. As he drove his delivery van along Gwynn Oak Avenue in his new residence of Woodlawn, Axl Rose's voice blared over the car radio, _"Welcome to the Jungle". _The forecast said there would be plenty more snow where that had come from, and at any rate, it was certainly more than Jack was used to. Having lived most of his life in southern California, Jack was used to sunny weather, but he had grown accustomed to cold weather over the past few years. He had just made a routine stop at a nearby 7-Eleven, and was on his way back to the office. His cell phone rang as he was thinking about how he was planning to spend the day, as after this stop, he was heading back home. He answered the call.

"Jack? How's it going today?", asked Ashley Slater, Jack's girlfriend.

"Hey, Ash. It's going great. I'm about to drop the van off at the office, and then I'll be on my way home.", Jack replied.

"Really? That's great, Jack! Well, hurry back! We've got some catching up to do tonight. Billy and Amy are out at the mall for Christmas gifts, so we'll have plenty of time to ourselves.", Ashley happily answered.

"Alright, I'm on my way. See you in a bit.", Jack said, before hanging up.

Ashley was a real sweetheart. After taking the fall for the New York minute, Jack drifted from town to town across the East Coast, with no friends or family to contact without the possibility of the authorities catching up to him. His luck turned for the better when he found an ad online that Ashley was renting out her house in Woodlawn. He immediately headed out to meet Ash, where she happily accepted Jack. He also shared the house with Billy Keane and Amy McCurdy, two of Ashley's college friends, but as long as had a place to stay, he didn't care how many people he shared a room with. He had gotten a steady job as a local UPS delivery driver, and registered with the name "Jack O'Brian", which he took from his good friend, Chloe. He knew the name Bauer would set off too many alarms, so he chose to forego it. As far he was concerned, Jack Bauer didn't exist anymore. He was done with that life. He had grown weary of torture, and looking back on it, he realized that hindsight was 20/20. What he had done was wrong, he knew it, and there was no morally justifiable reason for doing so. He was foolish to ever try to defend it. He now knew that torture is not only ineffective, but immoral, and that he was wrong for ever doing so. But he was also conflicted, in that he was uncertain if he would have achieved different results if he was less crass. Whatever the case though, he knew that regardless of what excuses he could come up with, such as how he was working with limited time constraints, were just that - excuses. But he wanted to look past all of that, all of his past. He was determined to move on.

He had even registered to vote since moving into civilian life. For the first time in almost 20 years, Jack voted in a Presidential election. He felt some sympathy for Allison Taylor, as she had promised his family would be safe after the peace treaty crisis, but he had nothing but dislike for Mitchell Hayworth, who had tried to use a terrorist attack on the White House years earlier for political gain, and he felt nothing but contempt for Blake Ellison, the Republican nominee in the 2020 election. Since Hayworth was both so incompetent and so unpopular thanks to the scandal-filled Taylor administration, he didn't even bother running, knowing he would have no chance of winning with Taylor's approval ratings at around 10%, and Hayworth's own approval ratings at around 30%. The GOP convention was in such disarry and so muddled thanks to no candidate being popular enough, that they put forth a compromise candidate in Ellison, the Congressman for California's 3rd District. Ellison was a leading supporter of private military corporations, and he was instrumental in re-opening the Counter Terrorist Unit after Taylor had it shut down. He was also thought to have cross-party appeal thanks to representing a largely Democratic state, but he ended up losing in a landslide to the Democratic nominee, Tom Fahey, who had previously served as the popular 2-term Governor of Colorado, and before that, a 5-term Congressman from Colorado's 1st District. In sharp contrast to Ellison, Fahey strongly opposed using PMCs, and while serving in Congress, was one of CTU's fiercest critics. Fahey also benefited from being very popular while Governor of a historically red state, and these factors, along with the overwhelming public disapproval of the Republican administration as well as the GOP-controlled Congress, led to an overwhelming landslide victory in both the electoral and popular votes in the 2020 election for Fahey, and a subsequent Democratic takeover of both the House and the Senate. For Jack, the choice was easy - Fahey, by a country mile. He even carried Maryland with 87% of the vote, and Woodlawn, a suburb of Baltimore, with over 70% of the vote. Ever since his election, Fahey has been working on a new peace treaty, and having enjoyed prosperous relationships with the new President of Russia, Dimitri Petrovic, as well as numerous other leaders, he promised one by Christmas of 2022, after the midterms. It's set to be signed by all participating countries tomorrow, and to go into effect soon after.

While Jack was driving down the road, a news broadcast cut into Guns N' Roses.

"This is National Public Radio, we interrupt your programming to bring you this breaking news story.", announced a female reporter. "A terrorist group has commandeered United Airlines Flight 901 en route from Prague to New York City. We don't have much information at this time, but we do know that the terrorists are members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, an Irish nationalist group which seeks to gain Northern Ireland's independence from the United Kingdom, as well as retribution from attacks against them. They are demanding not only the cancellation of tomorrow's peace treaty, but also that the UK must recognize Ireland's full independence immediately, and that America and Great Britian must release an as-of-yet unknown number of IRA members currently imprisoned. Full details are still sketchy, and it's not certain when this attack took place, but we do know that they have already killed at least one hostage, and presumably the entire security detail onboard the plane. President Fahey has been alerted to the situation, but a source close to President Fahey maintains that this will not deter the President from a stop in Nashville later this morning that concerns this very treaty, which President Fahey and Russian President Petrovic have been working on since both men took office. More details on this story as it develops. For now, I'm Michelle Greene, NPR.", the broadcast ended.

Jack didn't know what to think at the moment. He was so overwhelmed that he pulled over at the side of the road. He had to take a few deep breathes, he hadn't heard anything like this in over 4 years. Only a bunch of bullshit that North Korea would launch attacks on America and Europe, but which was completely impossible thanks to their small army. This however, was different. It looked like it could turn into the next 9/11 at any moment.

"Irish terrorists.", Jack said to himself.

He knew who the IRA were. He had dealt with them about 20 years ago, when a defector named Moira O'Neal turned herself in because she had grown tired of the violence. She wanted to bring down an IRA supporter named Michael Donovan, who she realized was supporting the IRA not on moral grounds, but purely for money. Going on information from Nina Myers, Donovan dispatched a team of IRA hitmen led by Tim McGinnis to kill O'Neal. Jack managed to kill them all, including McGinnis, and brought O'Neal to safety. This led to Donovan's arrest, as well as the decryption of Donovan's entire database. It was the biggest accomplishment for CTU since its inception. Now, Jack could only wonder if these terrorists on the plane were related to McGinnis and Donovan.

As he was thinking about what he had just heard, his walkie-talkie crackled.

"Jack? You there?", asked a voice on the other end. Jack picked up the radio.

"Yeah, I'm here. You want me to come back?", Jack answered.

"No, not yet. You've got one last stop before quitting time. Head over to Monaghan's Pub off of Woodlawn Drive and pull into the storage area around the back.", the operator on the other end said.

"Copy that. Out.", Jack replied.

The voice sounded very familiar, it sounded like a voice from Jack's past. He didn't think much about it. He just had a lot on his mind from what he had just heard over the radio. Wasting no time, he headed down Woodlawn Drive and made a left. He drove along the road, where Monaghan's Pub was. As per instructed, he pulled around the back into the storage area and parked his truck at the loading bay. He got out and started unloading boxes from the back of the truck marked "MONAGHAN'S". As he unloaded boxes, he heard someone from behind say,

"Hey Jack."

He knew that voice. It was the same one from the radio. But he didn't think it possible. He hesitantly turned around to see, in the flesh, perhaps the only partner of his who didn't end up dead or in jail.

"You haven't forgotten about me, have you?"

It was Chase Edmunds. Jack hadn't seen Chase in about 14 years, and even though Chase managed to stay alive and free, he was still handicapped.

"Chase? It's been so long.", Jack answered.

"Too long. It's been too long, Jack.", Chase answered back. "So this is what you've been up to lately? Delivering packages all over the state? What happened to Jack Bauer, federal agent?"

"Funny, Chase. Haven't you heard? I'm something of an icon these days, a wanted man if you will.", Jack replied.

"I know, Jack, I know. In fact, that's why I'm here. I'd love to reminisce, but we've got to get down to what matters, and what matters is possibly the fate of the entire world.", Chase said.

"I'm out of the game, Chase. I've been out of the game for 4 years now, which is a record for me. And I don't want to go back into the game, because every time I try to get out, I get dragged back in. I'm not buying that I'm the best guy available for this shit anymore. There's plenty of younger guys out there.", Jack retorted. He didn't know why he was arguing with Chase. He just knew he was getting called in again.

"Well, Jack, I'm sure you'd love to continue on with your routine life now, but I'm to let you know that I have the authority to bring you in. There's a heavy price on your head, you know.", Chase replied.

Jack didn't have the faintest idea what Chase was talking about, but he knew that wherever this was going, Jack was quickly running out of options.

"What does that mean, Chase? That you'll turn me in so you can collect the bounty? Is this how old friends are?", Jack wanted answers, now. Chase just chuckled, but Jack wasn't finding the humour here, unless you considered it funny in a "fucking terrible, sick, not at all funny way".

"No, Jack. I wouldn't turn you in for the reward. But you're kind of like Leon. Your services are in great demand these days, and not only that, but a...certain agency would be honoured if you chose to provide your services for them.", Chase said.

"CTU? No thanks, Chase. I'm not ever going to work for them again. They can't get a goddamned thing done without some intelligence leak, or without some supposedly trusted individual being in cahoots with terrorists. They get less shit done than James Garfield there. The New York branch is even worse, they didn't get anything good done, and they actually aided the terrorists more than tried to stop them, and that's crap even for bureaucracy.", Jack made his honest opinion of CTU clear.

"No, not CTU, Jack. We can't trust CTU.", and for once in this conversation, Jack agreed with Chase on something.

"Yeah, you're damned right. So who is it, then? FBI? CIA? NSA?", Jack inquired.

"That's a trade secret, Jack. I can't tell you that right now. But what I can tell you is that we can't trust CTU because we believe they're covertly supporting the IRA on this plane hijacking.", Chase replied.

"Who is this 'we', Chase? The royal we? Because you're not giving me a whole lot of answers right now.", Jack asked.

"I apologize for this, Jack. I really do. But you're going to have to trust me on this. Please, Jack. Just hear me out.", Chase was sincere.

Jack thought it over for a second, but ultimately realized that for this to work, he would have to trust Chase.

"Okay, Chase. What's going on?", Jack asked.

"Here's the deal, Jack. The people I work with know where you are, we've been keeping tabs on you.", Chase said.

"So you're my guardian angel, then?", Jack sarcastically asked.

"In a nutshell, yes.", Chase answered. "But the people I work for want you to work with us. They don't want all of the other agencies closing in on you, because that means you could be brought down by people with a connection to whatever the hell's going on today. Especially not CTU. And plus, there's benefits to doing this job. For one, you'd get a full Presidential pardon for your past crimes. Now listen, we have a plan to get you and some other guys on that plane so you can stop the terrorists onboard and land it safely. I wish I could tell you more, but you have to trust me here.", Chase said.

"Alright, what do you want me to do?", Jack asked.

"Get to Baltimore International Airport. We've got a plan to ground the plane and buy the passengers onboard some extra time. But it has to be fast. The plane's less than an hour away.", Chase replied.

"Do I get any equipment? I have a pistol and some clips in the truck, but that's not going to be enough to neutralize an entire terrorist cell.", Jack inquired.

"You'll get it when you get to the airport. Just head around the back. The guards have been briefed, they'll let you through.", Chase answered back.

"How am I supposed to recognize your guys?", Jack asked.

"Oh, you'll know when you get there, Jack. Just trust me on this. You'll learn more soon enough.", Chase vaguely replied. "Just get going or you'll miss your flight. Good luck, Jack. We should have contact on the plane if everything goes right."

"When this is over, Chase, you and I are going to have a little chat.", Jack warned.

"Don't worry, Jack. This'll all make sense soon enough. Take care, and god speed.", Chase said, before taking off.

This was not Jack's day, at all. He was supposed to not have to deal with this shit anymore. Well, Presidential pardons are always nice. Back in the day, Jack would negotiate a lot of pardons with guys and girls who wanted to get off with leniency, but he never imagined he'd be on the receiving end of one. Whatever the case, he had to get to Baltimore, but he had another stop to make first. He jumped in his truck and quickly drove off and turned left onto Windsor Mill Road. He drove north, around the 7-Eleven, and turned east onto 2104 Meadowview Road. He jumped out and ran inside the house, where he found Ashley covered up on the couch, watching TV. It was Christmas, so a marathon of The Simpsons was on.

"Jack! You're back!", Ashley jumped up and hugged Jack. She was a very pretty girl - tall, with deep blue eyes and brunette hair. "Jack, did you hear what happened with the plane? They say it's terrorists! Is everything okay?", Ashley worriedly asked.

"Don't worry, everything will be fine. Ashley, I don't know how to tell you this, but...", Jack tried to find an answer.

"Jack? What's wrong? Don't tell me you have to work the rest of the day!", Ashley asked.

"Sorry, Ashley, I do. I know it's the Christmas holiday, and Mooney promised me I could take the next few days off, but we got an unexpected rush just a few minutes ago and I'll have to work later than expected. When will Billy and Amy be back?", Jack asked.

"They're on their way right now, they say they're really nervous about this plane hijacking.", Ashley answered.

"Good, they need to be here with you the rest of the day. I'm not sure when I'll be back, but I promise I'll be back by Christmas morning. I promise.", Jack hoped.

"Oh, please hurry back, Jack! I don't what these terrorists will do with the plane, I just hope the people onboard are okay.", Ashley said.

"It'll be all right, Ash. Just have Billy and Amy pick you up some take-out on the way back, and don't go too far. I promise, you'll have fun.", Jack assured her.

"Thank you, Jack. I'll be fine, you take care.", Ashley said.

"You too, Ash. I'll talk to you as soon as I can. I love you, you know that.", Jack said.

"I love you too, Jack.", Ashley kissed him, and he returned the favor.

Jack ran out of the house and jumped back in his delivery van. He looked at his watch. It was 5:42. He didn't have any time to waste. He quickly got onto the highway and headed towards Baltimore.


End file.
